Will Trent Season 4: Caleb's Character Changes Bring Emotional Conflict

6 days ago 18

Ramón Rodriguez's Will looking upset with the camera tilted in Will Trent season 4

Grant Hermanns is a TV News Editor, Interview Host and Reviewer for ScreenRant, having joined the team in early 2021. He got his start in the industry with Moviepilot, followed by working at ComingSoon.net. When not indulging in his love of film/TV, Grant is making his way through his gaming backlog and exploring the world of Dungeons & Dragons with friends.

Warning: Some SPOILERS lie ahead for Will Trent season 4, episode 1, "...Speaking Of Sharks"!Despite seemingly going into the new season on a more hopeful note, Will Trent season 4 is quietly shaking things up with Yul Vazquez's Caleb to create some extra emotional beats for the titular character. Introduced in season 3 of the hit ABC series, Caleb Roussard is a sheriff working in a small Georgia town who was revealed to be Will's long-lost biological father, a stark change from Karin Slaughter's source novels in which Greg Germann's James Ulster is.

Through their handful of interactions, Will Trent season 3 saw Ramón Rodriguez's protagonist give a lot of pushback to Caleb's efforts of getting to know him, pointing to his foster care upbringing as evidence he didn't need his father in his life. However, by the end of the season, Will appeared open to the possibility of developing a relationship with Caleb, even agreeing to have dinner with him and his family, which didn't occur as the season was left on a cliffhanger.

Now, in anticipation of the show's return, ScreenRant's Grant Hermanns interviewed Karine Rosenthal, Liz Heldens and Daniel Thomsen to discuss Will Trent season 4. When asked whether the return to a tense dynamic between Will and Caleb stemmed from a personal worry about the former's safety during the manhunt for Ulster or a personal concern of not getting emotionally entangled in it, Rosenthal confirms it's "both" but also "primarily" the former.

Pointing out that the new season begins five months after the season 3 cliffhanger, the showrunner went on to express a belief that Caleb and Will have "been having these slightly awkward family dinners" in the time since, but have been "trying to get to know each other in a very taciturn way." Acknowledging there being a full-circle nature to them being on a case again after audiences saw them meet on a prior case, though this time one in which "Caleb feels Will's very at risk," it's created a complex new chapter for the pair:

Karine Rosenthal: Caleb's not coming out and saying, "Oh, my God. You're my son that I've only had for less than six months, I can't lose you," but that's the subtext of what's happening. I think it's hard for Caleb to accept that this is important to Will, and that he cannot sit back and not put himself right out there to find this man who's responsible for the death of his mother. That's where the conflict comes in between these two, because both of them have incredibly emotional reasons for what they are doing, how they are approaching the case, and how they are approaching the investigation. But they're not going to talk about the emotional reasons. It's more, "I don't agree with what you're doing procedurally," and that's what's going to be on the surface.

Thomsen went on to express having "grown to really appreciate Yul Vazquez's performance as Caleb," and even sharing some of how the showrunners "changed a little bit of the character" coming into Will Trent season 4. Having originally envisioned a "very brash" character, Thomsen admitted to a desire to avoid "a bad execution of that idea."

Teasing there being a bigger working relationship between Caleb and Will in season 4, Thomsen turned his attention back to the Severance alum for being able to capture "this really quiet confidence that's not showy," particularly when it comes to his job. Feeling that he's "at a point in his life where he does not want feedback on what he's doing," the showrunner indicated this will lead to some "really dramatic moments" between the pair, as there will be instances in which "Will gives him s--t," but Vazquez will only sometimes "brush it off with good humor":

Daniel Thomsen: It brings us to really dramatic moments where they do yell at each other and, as the season goes on, that's gonna build. Their conflict may at some point become physical, but it's a question of, "Can you still have a loving father-son relationship when Dad doesn't want to listen to the son's feedback on his life, and the son also doesn't really agree with how the dad is living his life?" It's been fun, and it's more nuanced. I give credit to Yul for helping us figure that out.

Heldens concurred that part of where their conflict is coming is that Will and Caleb are "alpha males in their own way," with each character being "used to being in charge" and therefore have some "natural friction." She then pointed to Thomsen's discussion of father and son relationships, feeling that will be the "relatable kernel at the heart of their relationship" across season 4 for all viewers to feel "Yeah, okay, I get it."

The Will Trent season 4 premiere did kick off with some of the awkward feelings between the pair that Rosenthal referred to, namely with the opening montage showing Rodriguez's character spending more time with Caleb and his family and bonding with his younger half brother. However, the biggest point of conflict seemed to stem from the management of the manhunt for Ulster, with Caleb essentially coming in and taking over jurisdiction from Will and his team.

Given the premiere not only ends without the pair settling any of their differences, but Will also seemingly being taken hostage by Ulster, he and Caleb will have a lot to sort through in the coming weeks. There's a likelihood that surviving the ordeal may soften one or both of them up to be more vulnerable with each other as season 4 progresses, though a large part of this will also come down to just how the situation with Ulster ultimately resolves.

Ramon Rodriguez as Will Trent in Will Trent season 3, episode 4

Will's Most Interesting New Relationship In Will Trent Season 4 Isn't Romantic

When Will Trent returns with its fourth season, the ABC series will introduce a new, exciting relationship for Will that isn’t romantic.

Caleb left Will in a very agitated state in the Will Trent season 4 premiere by killing Ulster's accomplice, even as Rodriguez's character was successfully talking him down. Should this quick-on-the-draw mentality lead to Caleb killing Germann's fan-favorite antagonist, the divide between the pair could grow even further if Will pulls back on his obsessive drive to hunt down Ulster and wants to bring him in alive.

New episodes of Will Trent season 4 air Tuesdays on ABC at 8 p.m. EST, and streams on Hulu.

Release Date January 3, 2023

Directors Howard Deutch, Eric Dean Seaton, Holly Dale, Lea Thompson, Patricia Cardoso, Sheree Folkson, Bille Woodruff, Erika Christensen, Gail Mancuso, Geary McLeod, Jason Ensler, Mark Tonderai, Paul McGuigan

Writers Inda Craig-Galván, Henry 'Hank' Jones, Karine Rosenthal, Adam Toltzis, Antoine Perry